Psalms 118:20
My soul hath coveted to long for thy justifications, at all times.
Open Psalms 118:20 in the Motif Searcher, word by word across all five texts →Show on the spiral →The verse in its languages
- Vulgate (Clementine)
- Concupivit anima mea desiderare justificationes tuas in omni tempore.
- Septuagint (Swete)
- ἐπεπόθησεν ἡ ψυχή μου τοῦ ἐπιθυμῆσαι εἰς τὰ δικαιώματά σου ἐν παντὶ καιρῷ.
- Hebrew (WLC) shown from Psalms 119:20
- גָּרְסָ֣ה נַפְשִׁ֣י לְתַאֲבָ֑ה אֶֽל מִשְׁפָּטֶ֥יךָ בְכָל עֵֽת
Haydock's commentary
Coveted. Hebrew, "burns, (Aquila; Houbigant) or is bruised, (Berthier) and faints through the desire of thy laws," (Calmet) or "judgments." (St. Jerome)
If I have but a short time to live, I ardently seek for instruction, (Worthington) and wish to advance daily in virtue. (Calmet)
His humility makes him fear, lest his desire should not be sincere. (Berthier)
From Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary, 1859, in the transcription made by Todd Easton and kept online by John Paul Wohlschied at johnblood.gitlab.io/haydock.
The Fathers on this verse
St Augustine City of God, That the Words Love and Regard (Amor and Dilectio) are in Scripture Used Indifferently of Good and Evil Affection
The right will is, therefore, well-directed love, and the wrong will is ill-directed love. Love, then, yearning to have what is loved, is desire; and having and enjoying it, is joy; fleeing what is opposed to it, it is fear; and feeling what is opposed to it, when it has befallen it, it is sadness. Now these motions are evil if the love is evil; good if the love is good. What we assert let us prove from Scripture. The apostle “desires to depart, and to be with Christ.” And, “My soul desired to long for Thy judgments;” or if it is more appropriate to say, “My soul longed to desire Thy judgments.” And, “The desire of wisdom bringeth to a kingdom.” Yet there has always obtained the usage of understanding desire and concupiscence in a bad sense if the object be not defined. …
St Augustine Expositions on the Book of Psalms, Gimel
20. But what is loved by loving, if love itself be not loved? Whence by consequence that stranger upon earth, after praying that the commandments of God might not be hidden from him, wherein love is enjoined either solely or principally; declareth that he desireth to have a love for love itself, saying, “My soul hath coveted to have a desire alway after Thy judgments” ( ver. 20 ). This coveting is worthy of praise, not of condemnation.…